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One day in May

1 May 1919
The Swiss football association changes its name to the Swiss football and athletics association.

3 May 1907
Fenerbache football club is founded in Turkey.

6 May 1964
Ecuador-born Alberto Spencer of Penarol scores the opening goal on his debut for Uruguay in their 2-1 defeat by England.

7 May 1982
Italy beat West Germany 1-0 to become European U-16 champions in the first ever competition in this age category.

8 May 1921
After inspecting the suburb of Wembley, the Football Association’s Stadium Committee gives approval to build a stadium on a site usually reserved for exhibitions.

9 May 1997
A crowd of 17,358 flock to see the match between the women’s national teams of the USA and England – a record attendance for a women’s friendly in the USA. Mia Hamm scored a hat trick on her team’s 6-0 win.

12 May 1962
Mexico’s president Adolfo Lopez Mateos gives permission for his country to host the 1970 FIFA World Cup TM and urges the participants to give a good account of themselves in the tournament.

13 May 1986
Iraq’s international players are excused from observing Ramadan in the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which on this occasion coincides with their involvement in the FIFA World Cup TM, on the grounds that the extreme physical exertion needs to be compensated with appropriate nourishment.

16 May 1981
New Zealand take Australia by storm by beating the home team 2-0 in Sydney in a qualifying match for the 1982 FIFA World Cup TM.

17 May 1907
The Finnish football association is founded.

18 May 1941
Costa Rica win the inaugural Central American and the Caribbean championship by beating El Salvador 3-1 on home ground.

19 May 1945
Gradanski Zagreb Club in former Yugoslavia is disbanded for being opposed to the communist regime. Their archives are burnt and their players forced to play for Partizan Belgrade or Dynamo Zagreb.

21 May 1904
FIFA is founded by delegates from Belgium, Denmark, France, Netherlandes, Spain (represented by Real Madrid), Sweden and Switzerland.

22 May 1923
The Far Eastern Championship Games open in Osaka, Japan, with China overcoming the Philippines 3-0. China are declared champions by beating Japan 5-1.

25 May 1930
Romania’s Rudolf Wetzer nets six goals in his team’s 8-1 victory over Greece, thus becoming his country’s highest goalscorer in a single match.

26 May 1993
In the final of UEFA’s brand-new Champions League, Olympique Marseille beat AC Milan thanks to a goal from Basile Boli, thus becoming the first French club to lift the cup.

27 May 1921
The Chilean referees’ association decided that, as from 1 June, referees must wear proper football kit, including black or blue shorts and football boots and socks. They are allowed to wear any color of shirt until the board has decided which color should be worn.

28 May 1982
The world transfer record is broken when – at the age of 21 – Diego Amando Maradona signs for Barcelona for GBP 4.23 million.

29 May 1961
The Hong Kong police commissioner warns fans to behave in the stadium or else all international matches will in future be banned. This warning is the result of incidents in a game between Madureira from Brazil and Hong Kong on 23 May, which the referee terminated because of endless complaints from the Btazilians.

29 May 1970
Pope Paul VI sends a letter of encouragement and solidarity to all of the players taking part in the ninths FIFA World Cup TM in Mexico.

30 May 1919
Roberto Chery dies in Rio de Janeiro from serious injuries suffered in his debut match for Uruguay against Chile on 17 May.

30 May 1927
After a match in Bologna inaugurating the Littorale stadium the previous day, the Italian football association invites the Spanish team to take a trip to Venice. The Italians have won the match 2-0, with King Victor Emmanuel III and Prince Alfonso of Spain among the spectators. Stanley Rous – later to become the President of FIFA – was the referee.

31 May 1907
TuS 04 (Germany), founded 1 July 1904, incorporate football among their sports. The football club then changes its name to Bayer 04 Leverkusen.

31 May 1950
FIFA President Jules Rimet arrives in Rio de Janeiro to preside over the organization of the World Cup after a 15-day voyage on the Claude Bernard ocean liner.